Latching mechanism for pet enclosure

ABSTRACT

A method of opening a door of a pet enclosure includes pushing a tab of a latch toward an interior of the pet enclosure with a first hand so that the door of the pet enclosure is vertically displaceable. The method further includes vertically lifting the door with a second hand so that a horizontal wire rod of the door is traversed in front of the tab. The method further includes rotating the door from a closed position to an opened position.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a divisional application of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 15/085,254 filed on Mar. 30, 2016, which claimed priority to,and the benefit of, U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/027,479entitled “Latching Mechanism For Pet Enclosure” filed on Jul. 22, 2014.

The entire disclosure U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/085,254 isincorporated by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

The various embodiments and aspects described herein relate to alatching mechanism for a door of a wire framed panel.

Pet crates are enclosures which contain animals such as dogs in order totransport or potty train the animal These pet crates are typicallyfabricated from a plurality of crisscrossing wire rods formed as panelsand erected into a box configuration to trap the animal in the petcrate. One or more side panels may have a door to allow the animal toenter or exit the pet crate. These doors must be locked to the closedposition so that the animal cannot open the door against the desire ofthe animal handler and also provide ease-of-use so that the animalhandler can easily close and open the door as well as lock the door whenin the closed position. Unfortunately, these door mechanisms arecumbersome to use.

Accordingly, there is a need in the art for an improved latchingmechanism.

BRIEF SUMMARY

A latching mechanism is disclosed herein wherein the latching mechanismprevents the opening of the door by the animal when the door is in theclosed position to prevent entry or exit of the animal through anopening of the door. The latching mechanism disclosed herein may beimplemented on a door that is horizontally or vertically pivotable. Thelatching mechanism does not interfere with a secondary locking mechanismthat hooks the door onto the panel when the door is in the closedposition.

More particularly, a pet enclosure for restraining a pet within an areais disclosed. The enclosure may comprise at least one panel, a door anda latch. The at least one panel may be fabricated from a plurality ofhorizontal and vertical wire rods. The horizontal and vertical wire rodsmay form an opening for ingress and egress of the pet. The door may befabricated from a plurality of horizontal and vertical wire rods. Thedoor may be sufficiently large to cover the opening of the panel toprevent ingress and egress of the pet through the opening when the dooris in a closed position and to allow ingress and egress of the petthrough the opening when the door is in an opened position. The latchmay be attached to the door or the panel for keeping the door in theclosed position.

The latch may comprise a body pivotable about a pivot axis and biasedtoward an engaged position. The body may have a cage for keeping alocking wire rod of the panel or door when the latch is respectivelyattached to the door or panel. The body may have a camming surface forpivoting the body away from the engaged position so that the lockingwire rod is guided into the cage.

The door may be vertically or horizontally traversable between theopened and closed positions.

The camming surface of the body of the latch may engage the locking wirerod of the panel or door to pivot the body and dispose the wire rod intothe cage. The camming surface may be disposed distal to the cage withrespect to a pivot axis of the body.

The latch may comprise a handle for pivoting the body from the engagedposition to a disengaged position.

In another aspect, a method for opening and closing a door of a petenclosure is disclosed. The method may comprise the steps of providingat least one panel having an opening for egress and ingress of a pet anda door sufficiently large to cover the opening of the panel to preventthe egress and ingress of the pet when the door is in a closed position;pivotally traversing a body of a latch mounted to the door or panel froman engaged position to a disengaged position to release a locking wirerod of the panel or door from a cage formed in the body of the latch;vertically traversing the panel to clear the locking wire rod from thecage of the latch; and after clearing the locking wire rod from thelatch, rotating the door from the closed position to the openedposition.

The pivotally traversing step may comprise the step of rotating a handlefrom a vertical position to a horizontal position about a handle pivotaxis wherein an opposing end portion of the handle may be operative topush the body of the latch so as to pivot the body from the engagedposition to the disengaged position.

In a different aspect, a pet enclosure for restraining a pet within anarea is disclosed. The enclosure may comprise at least one panel, a doorand a latch. The at least one panel may be fabricated from a pluralityof horizontal and vertical wire rods. The horizontal and vertical wirerods may form an opening for ingress and egress of the pet. The door maybe fabricated from a plurality of horizontal and vertical wire rods andtraversable between closed and opened positions. The door may besufficiently large to cover the opening to prevent ingress and egress ofthe pet through the opening when the door is in the closed position andto allow ingress and egress of the pet through the opening when the dooris in the opened position. The latch may be attached to the door or thepanel for keeping the door in the closed position.

The latch may comprise a handle and a catch which are rotatable betweenan engaged position and a disengaged position. The handle and catch maybe biased and traversed to an offset position upon rotation of the catchto the disengaged position so that the catch does not interfere withtraversal of the door between the closed and opened positions.

The enclosure may further comprise a compression spring disposed betweenthe catch and a plate mounted to the door or panel to bias the handleand the catch to the offset position.

The enclosure may further comprise a rod connecting the handle and thecatch. The rod may be traversable through a hole formed in a plate formounting the latch to the door or panel.

The door may be vertically traversed when the door is traversed betweenthe closed and opened positions.

In another aspect, a method for opening and closing a door of a petenclosure is disclosed. The method may comprise the steps of providingat least one panel having an opening for egress and ingress of a pet anda door sufficiently large to cover the opening to prevent the egress andingress of the pet when the door is in a closed position; rotating acatch to a disengaged position with a handle; and traversing the catchand the handle to an offset position when the catch is rotated to thedisengaged position so that the catch does not interfere with traversalof the door between the opened and closed positions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a pet crate having a door traversed tothe closed position and a first embodiment of a latching mechanism;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of the latching mechanism shownin FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the latching mechanism shownin FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a rear perspective view of the latching mechanism shown inFIG. 2;

FIG. 5A illustrates the latching mechanism of FIG. 2 being disengaged topermit traversal of the door to an opened position;

FIG. 5B is a cross-sectional side view of the disengaged latchingmechanism of FIG. 5A;

FIG. 6A illustrates the door and latching mechanism of FIG. 5A with thedoor in an up position;

FIG. 6B is a cross-sectional side view of the door and latchingmechanism shown in FIG. 6A;

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional side view of the door and latching mechanismshown in FIG. 6A with the latching mechanism being traversed to anengaged position;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the pet crate having the door traversedto the closed position and a second embodiment of the latchingmechanism;

FIG. 9 is an enlarged perspective view of the latching mechanism shownin FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view of the latching mechanism shownin FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a rear perspective view of the latching mechanism shown inFIG. 9;

FIG. 12A illustrates the latching mechanism shown in FIG. 9 beingdisengaged to permit traversal of the door to the opened position;

FIG. 12B is a cross-sectional side view of the disengaged latchingmechanism of FIG. 12A;

FIG. 13A illustrates the door and latching mechanism shown in FIG. 12Awith the door in an up position;

FIG. 13B is a cross-sectional side view of the door and latchingmechanism shown in FIG. 13A;

FIG. 14A is a perspective view of the door and latching mechanism withthe door being traversed to an opened position;

FIG. 14B is a cross-sectional side view of the door and latchingmechanism shown in FIG. 14A;

FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional side view of the door and latchingmechanism shown in FIG. 11 with the latching mechanism being traversedto the engaged position;

FIG. 16 is a perspective view of the pet crate having the door traversedto the closed position and a third embodiment of the latching mechanism;

FIG. 17 is an enlarged front view of the latching mechanism shown inFIG. 16;

FIG. 18 is an enlarged perspective view of the latching mechanism shownin FIG. 16;

FIG. 19 is a rear exploded perspective view of the latching mechanismshown in FIG. 17;

FIG. 20A illustrates the latching mechanism shown in FIG. 17 when aperson depresses the latching mechanism in order to allow the door to betraversed to the opened position;

FIG. 20B is a side cross-sectional view of the latching mechanism anddoor shown in FIG. 20A;

FIG. 21A illustrates the door shown in FIG. 20B being traversed upward;

FIG. 21B is a side cross-sectional view of the door and latch mechanismshown in FIG. 21A;

FIG. 21C illustrates the door being traversed to the opened position;

FIG. 22A illustrates the door shown in FIG. 21C being traversed to aclosed position;

FIG. 22B illustrates a side cross-sectional view of the door andlatching mechanism of FIG. 22A;

FIG. 23A is a front view of the door and latching mechanism shown inFIG. 22A as the door is being traversed to the closed position;

FIG. 23B is a cross-sectional side view of the door and latchingmechanism shown in FIG. 23A;

FIG. 24 is a perspective view of the pet crate with a fourth embodimentof the latching mechanism;

FIG. 25 is an enlarged perspective view of the latching mechanism shownin FIG. 24;

FIG. 26 is a side view of the latching mechanism shown in FIG. 25;

FIG. 27 illustrates the latching mechanism shown in FIG. 26 beingunlocked;

FIG. 28 illustrates the door being lifted up so that the door can bepivoted to the opened position;

FIG. 29 illustrates the first embodiment of the latching mechanism on adoor that is pivoted upward;

FIG. 30 illustrates the second embodiment of the latching mechanism on adoor that is pivoted upward;

FIG. 31 illustrates the third embodiment of the latching mechanism onthe door that is pivoted upward;

FIG. 32 illustrates the fourth embodiment of the latching mechanism onthe door that is pivoted horizontally;

FIG. 33 is a perspective view of the door of a pet crate traversed tothe closed position and a fifth embodiment of the latching mechanism;

FIG. 34 is an enlarged exploded perspective view of the latchingmechanism shown in FIG. 33;

FIG. 35 illustrates the latching mechanism shown in FIG. 33 with ahandle partially lifted upward;

FIG. 36 illustrates the latching mechanism shown in FIG. 33 with thehandle fully lifted upward so that the body is fully rotated and a hookof the body is disengaged from a horizontal wire rod of the panel;

FIG. 37 illustrates the door of FIG. 36 when the door is lifted upwardafter the fifth embodiment of the latching mechanism is disengaged;

FIG. 38 illustrates the door being pivoted to an opened position;

FIG. 39 illustrates the fifth embodiment of the latching mechanism inits normal state with the door in the opened position;

FIG. 40 is a cross-sectional view of the latching mechanism shown inFIG. 33 when the door is pushed against the panel in preparation ofengaging the latching mechanism;

FIG. 41 is a cross-sectional view of the latching mechanism shown inFIG. 33 with the latching mechanism on its way to the engaged position;and

FIG. 42 is a cross-sectional view of the latching mechanism shown inFIG. 31 with the latching mechanism fully engaged.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring now to the drawings, latching mechanisms 10, 100, 200, 300,400 are shown in FIGS. 1, 8, 16, 24 and 33. These latching mechanisms10, 100, 200, 300, 400 are used to prevent opening of a door 12 toprevent ingress or egress through an opening 14 formed in a panel 16.The door 12 may be hinged to a vertical wire rod 18 of the panel 16 sothat the door 12 may be rotatably traversed between an opened positionand a closed position in a lateral or horizontal direction.Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 24, the door 312 may be hinged to ahorizontal wire rod 318 so that the door 312 may be rotatably traversedbetween an opened position and a closed position in a verticaldirection. Each of the latching mechanisms 10, 100, 200, 300, 400 do notinterfere with operation of a lock 20 that requires the door 12 to belifted in a vertical direction when traversing the door 12 between theopened and closed positions. Additionally, the latching mechanisms 10,100, 200, 300, 400 do not interfere with operation or traversal of thedoor 12, 312 when being rotated between the opened and closed positions.Moreover, the latching mechanisms 10, 100, 200, 400 may have a cammingsurfaces 24, 124, 224, 424 that operates the latching mechanism 10, 100,200, 400 without handler intervention when traversing the door 12 fromthe opened position to the closed position. Once the door 12 is in theclosed position, the latching mechanisms 10, 100, 200, 300, 400 receivea wire rod 26, 28 of the respective panel 16 or door 12 so that the door12 cannot be traversed up and down or traversed from the closed positionto the opened position without handler intervention.

Referring now to FIGS. 1-7, and more particularly to FIGS. 1 and 2, aperspective view of the panel 16 and door 12 fabricated from a pluralityof vertical and horizontal wire rods 26, 28 is shown. The door 12 may behinged to the panel 16 about a vertical wire rod 18 of the panel 16. Aplurality of horizontal wire rods 28 of the door 12 may be bent aroundthe vertical wire rod 18 of the panel 16. The horizontal and verticalwire rods 26, 28 define an opening 14 of the panel 16 through which apet may enter or exit a pet crate 32. The door 12 is shown as beingrotatable about the vertical wire rod 18 of the panel 16 so that thedoor 12 may be rotated to the left. However, it is also contemplatedthat the door 12 may be hinged to a vertical wire rod 18 on the otherside of the opening 14 so that the door 12 may be rotated to the right.The various aspects and features disclosed herein may be modified in thereverse direction in order to accommodate the right swinging door 12.Additionally, the vertical wire rod 18 of the panel 16 which defines thepivot axis of the door 12 is shown as defining an interior periphery ofthe opening 14. However, it is also contemplated that the vertical wirerod 18 about which the door 12 rotates or is hinged to may be offsetoutward from the opening 14 as shown in FIG. 8. Additionally, in analternative embodiment, it is also contemplated that the door 312 may betraversed upward about a horizontal wire rod 28 as shown in FIG. 25.

The door 12 is traversable between a closed position and an openedposition. In the closed position, the door 12 may have a lock 20 (seeFIG. 2) in the form of a plurality of hooks 34 that are hooked over oneor more horizontal wire rods 28 of the door 12. The locks 20 are lockedwhen the hooks 34 are engaged to the wire rod(s) 28. The locks 20 areunlocked when the hooks 34 are disengaged from the wire rod(s) 28. Whenthe pet attempts to push the door 12 open, the hooks 34 prevent the door12 from rotating to the opened position. However, some pets may becapable of lifting the door 12 so that the hooks 34 clear the respectivehorizontal wire rods 28 to rotate the door 12 to the opened position.The operation of the hooks 34 is described in U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 13/045,035, the entire contents of which are expresslyincorporated herein by reference. Although the door 12, 312 is shown asincorporating hooks 34, it is also contemplated that the latchingmechanisms 10, 100, 200, 300, 400 may also be used in conjunction withother structures such as inverted hooks, up-right clips, inverted tabsand up-right tabs as described in U.S. patent application Ser. No.13/045,035.

Referring now to FIGS. 1-7, and more particularly to FIG. 2, a firstembodiment of a latching mechanism 10 is shown which prevents the animalfrom being able to lift the door 12 upward so that the hooks 34 cannotclear the horizontal wire rods 28 of the panel 16. The latchingmechanism 10 may be mounted to the panel 16. In particular, the latchingmechanism 10 may have a pivot pin 36 which is welded to two adjacentvertical wire rods 26 of the panel 16. The pivot pin 36 is preferably ina horizontal configuration and generally perpendicular to the rotationalaxis 37 (see FIG. 1) of the door 12 about the vertical wire rod 18 ofthe panel 16. As shown in FIG. 3, the latching mechanism 10 may furtherinclude a body 38 that has lower flanges 40 on both sides that extendaway and toward the pivot pin 36. The lower flanges 40 may haveapertures 42 through which the pivot pin 36 resides. In this manner, thebody 38 of the latching mechanism 10 pivots about the pivot pin 36, andthus, the pivot pin 36 defines a pivot axis 43 of the body 38 of thelatching mechanism 10.

The body 38 of the latching mechanism 10 may further include upperflanges 44. These upper flanges 44 extend toward the interior of the petcrate 32 and form a cage 46 in which a horizontal wire rod 28 a of thedoor 12 is trapped to prevent the door 12 from being verticallytraversed upward. The upper flanges 44 may have lower surfaces 48 whichdefines the cage 46 and is generally perpendicular to a direction of theupward traversal of the door 12. It is also contemplated that the lowersurfaces 48 of the upper flanges 44 of the body 38 may be slanteddownwards (see dashed lines in FIG. 3) so that the horizontal wire rod28 is jammed into corner 50 when the door 12 is traversed upward withouttraversing the body 38 of the latching mechanism 10 to a releasedposition.

The upper surfaces 52 of the upper flanges 44 may act as a cammingsurfaces to aid in the capture of the horizontal wire rod 28 a of thedoor 12 when the door 12 is traversed from the opened position to theclosed position. In particular, in closing the door 12, the door 12 isinitially raised upward and aligned to the panel 16. At this point, thehorizontal wire rod 28 a of the door 12 which will be trapped within thecage 46 is disposed immediately above the upper surfaces 52 of the upperflanges 44, as shown in FIG. 7. When the door 12 is dropped, thehorizontal wire rod 28 a of the door 12 contacts the upper surfaces 52and due to the angled nature of the upper surfaces 52 of the upperflanges 44, the horizontal wire rod 28 a of the door 12 pushes the body38 outward in the direction of arrow 53 and pivots the body 38 about thepivot pin 36. The horizontal wire rod 28 a of the door 12 is nowdisposed below the upper flanges 44 and the body 38 is traversed to theengaged position as shown in FIG. 4.

Referring back to FIG. 3, the body 38 of the latching mechanism 10 maybe biased to the engaged position with a spring 54 so that the body 38is traversed back to the engaged position once the horizontal wire rod18 of the door 12 is disposed below the upper flanges 44. In particular,the spring 54 may be disposed below the pivot pin 36. The spring 54 isdisposed about and guided by a guide rod 56 that is attached to a lowerhalf of the body 38. A guide plate 58 with an aperture 60 may beattached (e.g., welded) to the vertical wire rods 26 of the panel 16.The guide rod 56 may proceed through the aperture 60 of the guide plate58 as shown in FIG. 5B. The spring 64 is disposed between the lower halfof the body 38 and the guide plate 58. When the body 38 is pivotedtoward the released position (see FIG. 5B), the spring 54 compressesbetween the body 38 and the guide plate 58. When finger pressure isreleased from the upper half of the body 36, the spring 54 pushes thelower half of the body 38 to push the body 38 back toward the engagedposition (see FIG. 4). As shown in FIG. 7, the body 38 may be traversedtoward the released position during the closing procedure under theforce of the horizontal wire rod 28a of the door 12 that contacts theupper surfaces 52 or during the opening procedure under the force of thehandler's finger pulling back on the tab 62 that extends the uppersurfaces 52 of the upper flanges 44, as discussed further below andshown in FIG. 5B.

In operation, the latching mechanism 10 prevents upward traversal of thedoor 12 when the door 12 is in the closed position, as shown in FIG. 2.The pet cannot escape out of the pet crate 32 because complex motorskills above the capabilities of the pet are required to open the door12 (i.e., the latching mechanism 10 must be traversed to the releasedposition and the door 12 lifted up). From the closed position, in orderto open the door 12, the handler pulls back on the body 38 in order totraverse the body 38 from the engaged position to the released positionas shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B. To facilitate such motion, a tab 62 isattached to the body 38 aligned to the upper surfaces 52 so as to forman extension thereof 52 and to provide further extension for use by thehandler's finger. The handler may use his or her index finger of onehand in order to pull back on the tab 62 in the direction of arrow 63.With the body 38 in the released position (see FIGS. 5A and 5B), thehorizontal wire rod 28 a of the door 12 is not trapped within the cage46 below the upper flanges 44. The handler may now use his or her otherhand to lift the door 12 upward so that the horizontal wire rod 28 a ofthe door 12 trapped within the cage 46 can be raised above the upperflanges 44 of the body 38, as shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B. Additionally,the hooks 34 are unhooked from the horizontal wire rod 28 of the panel16 to allow the door 12 to be rotated to the opened position.

When the body 38 is in the engaged position and the horizontal wire rod28 a is trapped in the cage 46, the upper flanges 44 of the body 38 aredisposed immediately above the horizontal wire rod 28 a, as shown inFIG. 4. When the door 12 is lifted upward, the horizontal wire rod 28 acontacts the lower surfaces 48 of the upper flanges 44. Since the lowersurfaces 48 are in a horizontal configuration with respect to the upwarddirection of the door 12, the upward force that the horizontal wire rod28 a applies to the upper flanges 44 of the body 38 cannot pivot thebody 38 to the released position. Moreover, the horizontal wire rod 28 athat is trapped within the cage 46 of the body 38 is preferably disposedimmediately above the pivot pin 36. As such, the upward force caused bythe horizontal wire rod 28 a on the upper flanges 44 is equallycounteracted by the downward force caused by the pivot pin 36. Thevertical alignment between the horizontal wire rod 28 a trapped withinthe cage 46 and the pivot pin 36 prevent any rotation of the body 38when the door 12 is lifted upward when the latching mechanism 10 is inthe engaged position. Moreover, the lower surfaces 48 of the upperflanges 44 may alternatively be tilted downward (see dash line 63 inFIG. 3) so that the horizontal wire rod 28 a trapped within the cage 46is further wedged toward the corner 50 when the body 38 is in theengaged position and the door 12 is lifted up. Only by traversing thebody 38 to the released position (see FIGS. 5A and 5B) is the horizontalwire rod 28 a allowed to escape out of the cage 46 of the body 38.

With the door 12 lifted upward and the horizontal wire rod 28 a out ofthe cage 46 of the body 38 of the latching mechanism 10, the handler maynow rotate the door 12 about the vertical wire rod 18 to traverse thedoor 12 to the opened position.

From the opened position, the handler may now close the door 12 with onehand. The handler merely lifts the door 12 upward so that the horizontalwire rod 28 a clears the upper edge of the tab 62 of the body 38. Thedoor 12 is rotated so that the door 12 covers the opening 14 of thepanel 16 and is generally parallel with the panel 16. At this point, thehorizontal wire rod 28 a is disposed immediately above the upper flanges44 of the body 38. The body 38 is also in the engaged position. Thehandler releases the door 12 to allow the door to fall downward as shownin FIG. 7. As the door 12 is traversed downward, the horizontal wire rod28 a contacts the upper surfaces 52. Since the upper surfaces 52 areangled, the horizontal wire rod 28 a pushes the upper half of the body38 outward and rotates the body 38 about the pivot pin 36. If thehorizontal wire rod 28 a is not perfectly disposed above the uppersurfaces 48 of the upper flanges 44, the horizontal wire rod 28 acatches the tab 62 which guides the horizontal wire rod 28 a onto theupper surfaces 52 of the upper flanges 44. This action also pivots thebody 38 about the pivot pin 36 toward the released position. Thehorizontal wire rod 28 a of the door 12 enters the cage 46. The body 38is pivoted back to the engaged position by way of the spring 54. At thispoint, the door 12 cannot be lifted upward by the pet.

Referring now to FIGS. 8-15, a second embodiment of the latchingmechanism 100 is shown. The latching mechanism 100 is similar to thelatching mechanism 10 shown in FIGS. 1-7. However, the latchingmechanism 100 is mounted to the door 12 instead of the panel 16. Also,instead of a two-handed operation to open the door 12 as discussed inrelation to FIGS. 1-6, the latching mechanism 100 and the door 12 can beopened with one hand.

Referring now to FIGS. 9 and 10, the latching mechanism 100 may have abody 138 that pivots about pivot pin 136. Pivot pin 136 is attached tothe vertical wire rods 26 of the door 12 in a horizontal orientationwith respect to the upward traversal of the door 12. In other words, thepivot pin 36 is oriented so as to be perpendicular to the pivot axis 37defined by the vertical wire rod 18 of the panel 16. The body 138 of thelatching mechanism 100 may have flanges 140 that extend toward theinterior of the crate 32. The flanges 140 may have apertures 142 throughwhich the pivot pin 136 resides. As such, the pivot pin 136 defines arotational axis of the body 138 between the released and engagedposition. The body 138 may be biased toward the engaged position withthe spring 154. The spring 154 is disposed between the body 138 and aguide plate 158. The guide plate 158 is attached to the vertical wirerods 26 of the door 12 and has an aperture 160 that receives a guide rod156. The guide rod 156 is attached behind the body 138 and holds thespring 154 in place. The spring 154 is disposed about the guide rod 56between the body 138 and the guide plate 58. As such, the spring pushesthe body 138 so as to bias the body 138 towards the engaged position.

The body 138 may additionally have flanges 144 that also protrude intoward the interior pet crate 32. The flanges 144 define upper surfaces148, as shown in FIGS. 10 and 11. The upper surfaces 148 form a cage 146in which a horizontal wire rod 28 a of the panel 16 is trapped toprevent upward traversal of the door 12 when in the closed position. Theupper surfaces 148 are preferably perpendicular to the upper traversalof the door 12 or in other words, perpendicular to the pivot axis of thedoor 12 defined by the vertical wire rod 18 of the panel 16. In thismanner, when the door 12 is lifted up with the latching mechanism 100 inthe engaged position, the horizontal wire rod 28 a of panel 16 does notcreate a force on the body 138 so as to traverse or pivot the body 138toward the released position. The upper surfaces 148 of the flanges 144may also be angled (see dash lines 145 in FIG. 10) so as to force thehorizontal wire rod 28 a of the panel 16 into the corner 150 when thepet attempts to lift the door 12 while the latching mechanism 100 is inthe engaged position.

The latching mechanism 10 may additionally have a handle 164 that ispivotally mounted to the pivot pin 136. The handle 164 has a grippingportion 166 that can be traversed upward in the direction of arrow 167(See FIGS. 12A and 12B) to traverse the body 138 from the engagedposition to the released position. When the gripping portion 166 of thehandle 164 is traversed upward, an opposed end 168 contacts the body 138above the pivot pin 136. The opposed end 168 pushes the body 138 so asto rotate the body 138 from the engaged position to the releasedposition. The handler grips the gripping portion 166 and rotates thegripping portion 156 upward. Once the flanges 144 clear the horizontalwire rod 28 a of the panel 16, as shown in FIGS. 13A and 13B, thehandler may now lift upward in the direction of arrow 169 on thegripping portion 166 in order to lift the door 12 upward. Since thehorizontal wire rod 28 a clears the flanges 144, the door 12 can belifted upward so that the horizontal wire rod 28 a escapes out of thecage 146 of the body 138. The door 12 may now be rotated about thevertical wire rod 18 of the panel 16 to traverse the door 12 to theopened position, as shown in FIGS. 14A and 14B.

From the opened position in order to close the door 12, the handler neednot manipulate the latching mechanism 100. Instead, the handler may grabthe door 12 by any one of the horizontal wire rods 28 a. The handlerlifts the door 12 upward so that the flanges 144 clear the horizontalwire rod 28 a of the panel which will be trapped in the cage 146 of thebody 138. The handler then rotates the door 12 to cover the opening 14of the panel 16. In this position, the door 12 is parallel with thepanel 16 and the latching mechanism 100 is generally above thehorizontal wire rod 28 a that will be trapped in the cage 146 of thebody 138 of the latching mechanism 100. The handler need only drop orrelease the door 12 and the horizontal wire rod 28 a of the panel 16will automatically be inserted into the cage 146 of the latchingmechanism 100 without any further handler intervention.

More particularly, when the handler releases the door 12, gravitytraverses the door 12 downward. On this downward traversal, thehorizontal wire rod 28 a of the panel 16 contacts lower surfaces 152 ofthe flanges 144. The lower surfaces 152 act as camming surfaces in orderto push the body 138 so that the body 138 pivots about the pivot pin 136toward the released position. More particularly, the lower surfaces 152are angled so that the horizontal wire rod 28 a of the panel 16generates a force in order to pivot the body 138 about pivot pin 136.Once the horizontal wire rod 28 a of the panel 16 clears the flanges144, the spring 154 pushes the body 138 back towards the engagedposition. At this point, the door 12 cannot be lifted upward by the petthat may be placed in the crate 32.

Referring now to FIGS. 16-23, a third embodiment of the latchingmechanism 200 is shown. The latching mechanism 200 is secured tohorizontal and/or vertical wire rods 26, 28 of the panel 16. When thedoor 12 is in the closed position, a tab 202 of the latching mechanism200 is disposed over a horizontal wire rod 28 a of the door 12 so thatthe door 12 cannot be lifted up in order to unlock the locks 20. The tab202 holds the door 12 in the closed position.

More particularly, the latching mechanism 200 may have first and secondcolumns 264 a, b that are secured to the vertical wire rods 26 of thepanel 16, as shown in FIG. 17. The first and second columns 26 a, b mayhave a C shaped channel 266 that extends along a height of the columns264 a, b so that the columns 264 a, b may be snapped over the verticalwire rods 26 of the panel 16, as shown in FIGS. 18 and 19. The latchingmechanism 200 is prevented from sliding up and down the vertical wirerods 26 by providing a lip 268 disposed at an upper portion of thelatching mechanism 200. The lip 268 forms a channel 270 which receivesthe horizontal wire rod 28 of the panel 16. As such, the latchingmechanism 200 is fixedly attached to the panel 16 by way of thehorizontal and vertical wire rods 28, 26. When the latching mechanism200 is mounted to the panel 16, the tab 202 protrudes outward from frontsurfaces 272 of the first and second columns 264 a, b, as shown in FIG.21C. When horizontal wire rod 28 a of the door 12 is disposedimmediately below a lower surface 274 of the tab 202, as shown in FIG.20A, this prevents the pet from lifting the door 12 with his or her pawor nose. Moreover, the horizontal wire rod 28 a of the door 12 isdisposed above lower end 276 a, b of the first and second columns 264 a,b. The locks 20 limit rotational movement of the door 12 about thevertical wire rod 18 of the panel 16 which in turn also limits thedistance the horizontal wire rod 28 a can be swung away from the tab 202of the latching mechanism 200. Preferably, a thickness of the tab 202 issufficiently great so that a front edge 280 (see FIG. 20B) of the tab202 extends beyond the maximum movement of the door 12 when in theclosed position as limited by the hooks 34 of the locks 20. Preferably,the front edge 280 of the lower surface 274 of the tab 202 extends to orbeyond a midpoint of the horizontal wire rod 28 a of the door 12. Morepreferably, the front edge 280 of the lower surface 274 of the tab 202extends beyond the entire horizontal wire rod 28 a of the door 12.

To open the door 12, the tab 202 must be displaced out of the way sothat the door 12 can be lifted up. When the tab 202 is disposed abovethe horizontal wire rod 28 a of the door 12, the horizontal wire rod 28a bumps into the tab 202 to prevent upward lifting of the door 12. Todisplace the tab 202 out of the way from the horizontal wire rod 28 a ofthe door 12, the handler need only push the tab 202 inward (see FIG.20B). To facilitate such inward pushing of the tab 202, the frontsurface 282 of the tab 202 may have an indentation 284. The indentation284 receives a finger (i.e., index finger) 286 of the handler andprevents the finger 286 from slipping off of the tab 202. In pushing thetab 202 inward, the tab 202 is displaced away from the horizontal wirerod 28 a to allow the handler to lift the door 12 upward to traverse thedoor 12 from the closed position to the opened position.

In operation, from the closed position, the handler may open the door 12by first pushing the tab 202 inward. (see FIGS. 20A and 20B). Thehandler places his or her finger on the front surface 282 of the tab 202and in the indentation 284. The handler pushes forward and moves the tab202 out of the way from the horizontal wire rod 28 a of the door 12.There may be a back stop that prevents excessive bending of the tab 202to prevent accidental breakage of the tab 202. In this position, thelatching mechanism 200 is in a released position. With the other hand,the handler may then lift the door upward to unlock the locks 20 fortraversal of the door 12 to the opened position. (see FIGS. 21A, 21B and21C). Although it is simpler for the handler to push the tab 202 withone hand and lift the door 12 with the other hand, it is alsocontemplated that given some practice, the handler may push the tab 202with the index finger of one hand and lift the door 12 with the thumb orother fingers of the same hand to open the door 12. The door 12 may nowbe traversed to the opened position.

From the opened position, the handler may close the door 12 by liftingthe door 12 upward so that the locks 20 may be engaged when the door 12is dropped or released later on. After lifting the door 12, the handlerrotates the door 12 (see FIGS. 22A and 22B) so that the horizontal wirerod 28 a of the door 12 contacts the front surfaces 272 of the first andsecond columns 264 a, b. The handler continues to push the horizontalwire rod 28 a of the door 12 into contact with the front surfaces 272 ofthe first and second columns 264 a, b while slowly letting the door 12drop downward, as shown in FIGS. 23A and 23B. During this motion, thehorizontal wire rod 28 a of the door 12 continues to push the tab 202inward and out of the way. Moreover, the locks 20 begin to engage. Whenthe horizontal wire rod 28 a of the door 12 traverses below the tab 202,the tab 202 is traversed toward the out direction through its ownresiliency (see FIG. 17) or a spring. The lower surface 274 of the tab202 is now disposed immediately above the horizontal wire rod 28 a ofthe door 12. In this position, the latching mechanism 200 is in theengaged position. The latching mechanism 200 may be is fabricated from amaterial which allows for some bendability but returns to its originalshape or position, and thus, may be considered to be resilient.

Referring now to FIGS. 24-28, a fourth embodiment of the latchingmechanism 300 is shown. The latching mechanism 300 is shown as beingutilized on a door 312 that is pivoted upward and downward to open andclose the door 312 on the panel 316. The operation of the door 312 isdescribed in U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 62/027,046,filed on Jul. 21, 2014, the entire contents of which is expresslyincorporated herein by reference.

The latching mechanism 300 is mounted to the door 12 and operated toengage the horizontal wire rod 28 a of the panel 16. When the latchingmechanism 300 is in the released position, a catch 364 releases thehorizontal wire rod 28 a of the panel 16 as well as is traversed out ofthe way to prevent interference between the catch 364 and the horizontalwire rods 28, 28 a of the panel 316 as the door 312 is being pivotedupward to open the door 312.

The pet crate 332 also has locks 20 that prevent the pet from pushingthe door 312 open when the pet is in the pet crate 332. To open andclose the door 312, the handler traverses the latching mechanism 302 tothe released position (dash lines in FIG. 25) from an engaged position(phantom lines in FIG. 25). When the latching mechanism is in thereleased position, the handler may grip a handle 366 to initially liftthe door 312 upward to disengage the locks 20. When the door 312 islifted upward, a dual axis hinge 368 rotates, as shown in FIG. 26. Whenthe locks 20 are disengaged, the door 312 may now be pivoted upward toopen the door and allow the pet to enter or exit the pet crate 332through the opening 330 formed in the panel 316, as shown in FIGS. 27and 28.

The latching mechanism 300 may be mounted to the door 312. Preferably,the latching mechanism 300 is mounted to a center of the door 312 withrespect to its hinge 368, as shown in FIG. 24. The latching mechanism300 is shown as being attached to the upper side of the door 312.However, it is also contemplated that the latching mechanism 300 may bemounted to the bottom side or either of the left and right sides of thedoor 312. If the latching mechanism 300 is mounted to side of the doors312, it is preferable that one latching mechanisms 300 b are mounted toeach of the left and right sides of the door 312. Regardless of theposition of the latching mechanism 300 on the door 312, the latchingmechanism 300 is positioned to engage a horizontal wire rod 28 a of thepanel 16 when the latching mechanism 300 is in the engaged position inthat the catch 364 prevents lateral movement as well as verticalmovement of the door 312.

Referring to FIG. 25, the catch 364 is attached to a handle 370 which isoperative to rotate the catch 364 between the engaged position and thereleased position. In the engaged position, the catch 364 has aprotrusion 372 that extends upward behind the horizontal wire rod 28 aof the panel 16. The protrusion 372 prevents the door 312 from beingpushed forward by the pet within the pet crate 332.

Moreover, the protrusion 372 is attached to a guide rod 374. A distalportion 375 of the guide rod 374 also forms part of the catch 364. Thedistal portion of the guide rod 374 is disposed under the horizontalwire rod 28 a of the panel 16 and prevents upward traversal of the doorwhen the catch 364 is in the engaged position so that the door 12 cannotbe traversed upward.

The guide rod 374 is mounted to a guide plate 376. The guide plate 376is mounted to the panel 316 such as by welding or other means known inthe art. The guide plate 376 has a through hole through which the guiderod 374 is disposed.

In the released position shown in dash lines in FIG. 25, the distalportion of the guide rod 374 is not disposed beneath the horizontal wirerod 28 a of panel 16. Moreover, the protrusion 372 is not disposedbehind the horizontal wire rod 28 a of the panel 16 as well. Thisprevents interference between the catch 364 of the latching mechanism300 and the wire rods 28, 28 a of the panel 16.

In order to traverse the catch 364 to the released position, the handlerrotates the handle 370 in a counterclockwise direction 373. In doing so,the protrusion 374 is rotated away from behind the horizontal wire rod28 a. Once the protrusion 372 clears the horizontal wire rod 28 a, aspring 370 pushes the protrusion 372 in the direction of arrow 380. Theprotrusion 372 is now disposed beneath and preferably in front of thehorizontal wire rod 28 a when the catch 364 and the latching mechanism300 are in the released position as shown by a comparison between FIGS.26 and 27. This spring 378 is disposed between the guide plate 376 and abackstop 382 mounted to the guide rod 374.

Also, handle 370 of the latching mechanism 300 may be engaged to abracket 384. The bracket 384 may be attached to the front side of theguide plate 376 or its rear side. The handle 370 may have an aperture386 in which the bracket 384 is received. The bracket 384 is fixedlysecured to the guide plate 376. As discussed above, the spring 378biases the catch 364 in the direction of arrow 380 (see FIG. 27).However, either the protrusion 372 may push against the horizontal wirerod 28a or the handle 370 may push against the bracket 384. Moreover, indiscussing the traversal of the catch 364 from the engaged position tothe released position, it has been described that the catch 364 movestoward the guide plate 376 when the protrusion 372 clears the horizontalwire rod 28 a. However, it is also contemplated that the bracket 384 maybe made sufficiently long so that the protrusion 372 does not traversetoward the guide plate 376 until the handle 370 clears the distal end ofthe bracket 384.

With the catch 364 in the released position, the protrusion 372 of thedistal portion of the guide rod 374 is displaced in front of thehorizontal wire rod 28 a of panel 16, as shown in FIG. 27. The handlermay now grip the handle 366 of the door 312, lift upward to unlock thelock 20 and rotate the door 312 upward to allow the pet to enter or exitthe pet crate 332, as shown in FIG. 28.

To close or traverse the door 312 to the closed position, the handlermay rotate the door 312 downward until the locks 20 are engaged. Thehandler then pushes the handle 370 inward so that the protrusion 372 isnow disposed behind the horizontal wire rod 28 a. With the protrusion372 disposed behind the horizontal wire rod 28 a, the handler turns thehandle 370 in the clockwise direction to move the protrusion 372immediately behind the horizontal wire rod 28 a. Moreover, the handle370 is rotated in the clockwise direction until the bracket 384 isreceived in the aperture of the handle 370. The latching mechanism 300has now been traversed to the engaged position. The pet cannot lift thedoor 312 upward to open the door 312.

The catch 364 has been described as being traverse from the engagedposition to the released position by rotating the handle 370 in thecounterclockwise direction. However, the reverse direction is alsocontemplated. In this regard, the handle 370 would be disposed on theleft side with the bracket 384 while the protrusion 372 is in itscurrent position shown in FIG. 21.

Referring now to FIGS. 29-32, the latching mechanisms 10, 100, 200, 300,400 may be incorporated into doors 12 that pivot vertically upward orlaterally. By way of example and not limitation, as shown in FIGS.29-31, the latching mechanisms 10, 100, 200, 300 as shown in FIGS. 1, 7and 14 may be incorporated into the door 312 shown in FIG. 21. It isalso contemplated that the latching mechanism 400 may be incorporatedinto door 312 shown in FIG. 21 in the same manner as latching mechanism100 as shown in FIG. 30. Also, as shown in FIG. 29, the latchingmechanism 300 shown in FIG. 21 may be incorporated into the laterallyopened door 12 shown in FIG. 1.

Referring now the FIGS. 33-42, a fifth embodiment 400 of the latchingmechanism 400 is shown. The latching mechanism 400 is similar to thelatching mechanism 100 as shown in relation to FIGS. 8-15 except for thefollowing features explained below. By way of example and notlimitation, the frame or panel 16 has a hook 402 that receives ahorizontal wire rod 28 of the door 12, as shown in FIGS. 38 and 42.Similar to the embodiment shown in FIGS. 8-15, the latching mechanism400 also allows for the door 12 to be opened and closed with one handinstead of requiring two hands.

Referring now to FIG. 34, the latching mechanism 400 may have a body 438and handle 464 which rotatably snap onto horizontal wire rod 28. Thebody 438 is nested within the handle 464, as shown in FIG. 33. Thehorizontal wire rod 28 is secured (e.g., welded) to the vertical wirerods 26 of the door 12. Guide plate 458 may be snapped onto the verticaland horizontal wire rods 26, 28 of the door 12. The guide plate 458receives the spring 454 to maintain the body 438 in the engaged position(see FIGS. 33 and 42 when the door 12 is in the closed position. Theback side of the body 438 has a locating pin 404 as shown in FIG. 40.Additionally, the guide plate 458 also has a corresponding locating pin405. In this manner, the guide pins 404, 405 of the body 438 and theguide plate 458 retain the spring 454 in place. The handle 464 and thebody 438 are also nested within the guide plate 458, as shown in FIG.33. During operation of the latching mechanism 400, a hook 406 of thebody 438 is latched onto horizontal wire rod 28 of the panel 16 toprevent the door 12 from being lifted upward, as shown in FIG. 42.Additionally, horizontal wire rod 28 of the door 12 is received withinthe hook 402 of a reinforcement member 408 to further keep the door 12in the closed position, as shown in FIG. 42.

A tamper-resistant plate 410 may be located behind the latchingmechanism 400 and be mounted onto the wire rods 26, 28 of the panel 16to prevent the animal within the enclosure from manipulating the handle464 or the body 438 from inside the enclosure in an attempt to open thedoor.

When the door 12 is in the closed position, as shown in FIG. 35, theuser can open the door 12 by first lifting the handle 464 in the updirection as shown by arrow 412. The handle 464 can freely rotate aboutthe horizontal wire rod 28 of the door 12 until inside edges 414 of thehandle 464 catch lips 416 of the body 438. The inside edges 414 and lipsare on opposed sides of the handle 414 and body 438. Once the insideedges 414 of the handle 464 contact the lips 416 of the body 438, anyfurther rotation of the handle 464 in the direction of arrow 412 willrotate the body 438 as shown in FIG. 36. When the body 430 is fullyrotated as shown in FIG. 36, the hook 406 of the body 438 clears thehorizontal wire rod 28 of the panel 16.

Referring now to FIG. 37, the user can now lift the handle 464 upward inthe direction of arrow 418 to release the door 12 from the panel 16. Thedoor 12 can be pivoted outward as shown in FIG. 38. When the handle 464is released as shown in FIG. 39, the spring 454 pushes the body 438 tothe engaged position. Gravity brings the handle 464 back downward. Inthis position, the user can grip the door 12 and need not manipulate thelatching mechanism 400 directly with his or her hand to traverse thedoor back to the closed and locked position. Referring now to FIG. 40,the door 12 is laid against or pushed against the panel 16 as shown inFIG. 40. The door 12 is also in the up position. In this position,camming surface 424 of the body 438 contacts an edge 420 of thereinforcement member 408. The door 12 can be dropped downward in thedirection of arrow 422 as shown in FIG. 41 at which time, the edge 420rotates the body 438 in the direction of arrow 423 so that the hook 406eventually clears the horizontal wire rod 28 of the panel 16. When thehook 406 of the body 438 clears the horizontal wire rod 28 of the panel16, the hook 406 is received under the horizontal wire rod 28 of thepanel 16. Moreover, the horizontal wire rod 28 of the door 12 isreceived within hook 402 of the reinforcement member 458 to further holdthe door 12 to the panel 16.

Moreover, the hook 406 of the body 438 may be shaped so that thehorizontal wire rod 28 of the panel 16 is further wedged into the hook406 if the animal attempts to lift the door 12 upward without liftingthe handle 464 to disengage the latching mechanism 400.

The above description is given by way of example, and not limitation.Given the above disclosure, one skilled in the art could devisevariations that are within the scope and spirit of the inventiondisclosed herein, including various ways of hinging the door to thepanel. Further, the various features of the embodiments disclosed hereincan be used alone, or in varying combinations with each other and arenot intended to be limited to the specific combination described herein.Thus, the scope of the claims is not to be limited by the illustratedembodiments.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of opening a door of a pet enclosure,the method comprising: pushing a tab of a latch toward an interior ofthe pet enclosure with a first hand so that the door of the petenclosure is vertically displaceable; vertically lifting the door with asecond hand so that a horizontal wire rod of the door is traversed infront of the tab; and rotating the door from a closed position to anopened position.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the pushing step isaccomplished with a finger of a person opening the door.
 3. The methodof claim 2, further comprising a step of positioning the finger in anindentation of the tab and exerting pressure inward toward an interiorcavity of the pet enclosure.
 4. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising providing a panel fabricated from a plurality of horizontaland vertical wire rods, the horizontal and vertical wire rods forming anopening for ingress and egress of the pet; providing a door fabricatedfrom a plurality of horizontal and vertical wire rods, the door being.sufficiently large to cover the opening of the panel to prevent ingressand egress of the pet through the opening when the door is in a closedposition and to allow ingress and egress of the pet through the openingof the panel when the door is in an opened position, the door beingpivotable about a vertical axis defined by a first vertical wire rod ofthe panel; a latch having a body attached to the wire rods of the panelto keep the door in the closed position, the latch comprising: a tabtraversable between an engaged position and a disengaged position, thetab being disposed over a first horizontal wire rod of the door when thedoor is in the closed position and the tab is in the engaged position sothat the door cannot be lifted up to unlock a lock which preventsrotational movement of the door from the closed position to the openedposition, the tab being biased to the engaged position and beingdisplaceable inward toward an interior cavity of the enclosure definingthe disengaged position so that the tab is not disposed over the firsthorizontal wire rod of the door, the door is liftable to unlock the lockand the door being rotatable to the opened position.
 5. A method ofclosing a door of a pet enclosure, the method comprising: gripping thedoor with the door is in an opened position; laterally traversing thedoor about a vertical axis defined by a vertical wire rod of a panel ofthe pet enclosure; pressing the door against a latch; lowering the doorwhile pressing the door against the latch so that a tab of the latch istraversed inward to allow the door to be fully lowered and a lock isengaged.
 6. The method of claim 5 wherein the pressing comprisespressing a horizontal wire rod of the door against the tab of the latch.7. The method of claim 5 wherein the lock is a hook attached to thedoor, and the lowering further comprises inserting a horizontal wire rodof a panel of the pet enclosure into the hook.
 8. The method of claim 5further comprising providing the panel fabricated from a plurality ofhorizontal and vertical wire rods, the horizontal and vertical wire rodsforming an opening for ingress and egress of the pet; providing a doorfabricated from a plurality of horizontal and vertical wire rods, thedoor being sufficiently large to cover the opening of the panel toprevent ingress and egress of the pet through the opening when the dooris in a closed position and to allow ingress and egress of the petthrough the opening when the door is opened position, the door beingpivotable about a vertical axis defined by a first vertical wire rod ofthe panel; a latch having a body attached to the wire rods of the panel,the latch being operative to keep the door in the closed position, thelatch comprising: a tab traversable between an engaged position and adisengaged position, the tab being disposed over a first horizontal wirerod of the door when the door is in the closed position and the tab isin the engaged position so that the door cannot be lifted up to unlock alock which prevents rotational movement of the door from the closedposition to the opened position, the tab being biased to the engagedposition and being displaceable inward toward an interior cavity of theenclosure defining the disengaged position so that the tab is notdisposed over the first horizontal wire rod of the door, the door isliftable to unlock the lock and the door is rotatable to the openedposition.